A Look At The 2017 World Baseball Classic

By Phil Hecken, on March 5th, 2017

By Phil Hecken

It’s baaaaack. OK, so it doesn’t quite have the panache of the Olympics or the cachet of Soccer’s World Cup, but the 2017 World Baseball Classic is set to begin this week. The action gets going as games begin on March 6 in Seoul, South Korea, for the first round. Sixteen teams are divided into four Pools (A through D). Other first round games take place in Tokyo, Japan, in Miami, Florida, and in Guadalajara, Mexico. The second round hosts will be Tokyo and San Diego, and the championship round will be played in Los Angeles.

Two-time champion Japan begins play March 7th against Cuba at the Tokyo Dome. The United States begins play on March 10 in Miami against Colombia. The first round is a round-robin format, with the top two teams at each site advancing to the second round, which will be played at the Tokyo Dome and Petco Park from March 12-16. The winners and runners-up then advance to the finals at Dodger Stadium from March 20-22.

This will be the fourth iteration of the WBC, with the first three having taken place in 2006, 2009 and 2013. After a three year gap between the first and second, the Classic is now held every four years (like the Olympics and World Cup). We’ve seen most of the teams before: twelve of the sixteen nations qualified based on their performance during the first round of the 2013 tournament; the remaining four nations are the winners of four qualification tournaments that took place in February and September 2016. Two of those teams (Australia and Mexico) played in the tourney before; two other qualifiers (Colombia and Israel) will each be making their first appearance in the WBC.

I’d hoped by now we’d have seen all the uniforms for the Classic fully revealed (like is done in virtually every other sport before a major tournament), but the WBC is a bit different. Most of the teams, as in the past, are outfitted by Majestic — and as in previous years, they follow a template. Fortunately, this year that template is better than past seasons (2009 was notable for the pit stains, while 2013 featured the contrasting shoulder and side panels). This year, for Majestic teams, it’s contrasting color sleeves. A few squads don’t use Majestic, and their unis are arguably better. As you’ll see below, several teams who have revealed their road uniforms are wearing darker grays — I can’t say for sure if all teams will have these or if solid color “road” tops will be worn, but I’ll give you the unis as best I know them at this point. For whatever reason, uni releases/photos for Pools C & D were almost impossible to come by, so most of those will come from the MLB shop.

Now then, let’s take a look at what the teams in the four pools are wearing. Every effort was made to find the most up-to-date photos and released unis (even if they are just from the MLB shop). Keep in mind these uniforms *might* be slightly different when the games get underway. Almost all teams use their national colors (or colors on their flag), and several are using the same fonts/wordmarks from previous WBCs. Following each team (except the USA, which for some reason wasn’t [yet?] released) is a brief “getting to know” video.

. . . . . . . . . .

POOL A

Israel

Israel, making its first appearance in the WBC, will be in blue and white with a blue cap featuring the Star of David, which is pretty cool. They will definitely be wearing the white jersey pictured above, while the other two photos show uniforms worn during qualifying. It’s almost a guarantee their road jersey will be dark gray with blue sleeves.

Netherlands will be wearing the white jersey you see above, but not the black one — they’ll have an updated one (likely black, but possibly orange or gray) with the new font seen on the jersey at the left. Their cap is black with an interlocking “NL” and orange brim.

Chinese Taipei are outfitted by Mizuno and will have white homes and blue road tops. Their cap is blue with a “CT” in red/white — a bit of baseball stitching appears in the negative space inside the “C” which is a cool touch.

The Aussies will be in green and gold, with white home jerseys and gray roadies, both with green contrasting sleeves. Their cap is an Oakland A’s-esque green crown/gold brim with 5 stars (similar to star arrangement on their flag).

China will be predominantly red with splashes of gold, sporting home white and dark gray roads (yes, we’re seeing a pattern here — the darker gray might be something Majestic is looking to get MLB teams to do in the final years of its contract, similar to the darker gray worn by the Diamondbacks). China has a nice red crown/gold brim cap with an old-English “C”.

Cuba will *not* (apparently) have their traditional and classic all-red uniform this year — their home jersey is white (it’s difficult to tell, but I believe it will be paired with red pants), while their road uni will be all gray. Both unis have contrasting red sleeves and they’ll wear blue undershirts. The cap is blue with a red brim and a “C”.

Unlike the templated Majestic teams, Japan will have a white pinstripe home uni, and a dark pinstripe jersey (with solid white pants) for their road uniform. Their cap is solid blue, with a blue “J” outlined in gold. Japan were champs in 2006 and 2009, and they’re looking to win it again this time around.

Canada will have a white jersey with red contrasting sleeves for their homes. I’m unsure about their road uniform. For most of the teams in Pool C & D only the home jersey is known for sure. The Canadians may go with a red road top, or dark gray. Their cap is red with a black brim, and a “C” (formed by a “swooshing” baseball) atop a maple leaf.

Colombia wore both red and blue tops in their qualifying rounds — I didn’t see a white jersey at all — and the MLB shop shows only a red tee shirt for purchase. I don’t want to even guess what they’ll wear for sure, but it would be cool if they went with the red and blue for the WBC. Their cap is solid blue with a red “C”.

I know for sure the DR will have a white jersey with red sleeves. Whether they have a gray top (also with red sleeves) or a red jersey (similar to the tee shirt shown above) is still unknown. Their cap is red with a blue brim, and an interlocking “DR”. The Dominicans won the WBC in 2013 and are looking to go back-to-back.

The USA will have a white home jersey with blue sleeves, and a dark gray jersey, also with contrasting blue, for their road unis. The classic “USA” (with the “S” make up of red/white ‘stripes’) is across the chest. The cap is blue with a red brim and an interlocking “US”.

. . . . . . . . . .

POOL D

Italy

Italy’s home jersey is white with blue sleeves. Whether they go with a blue top or a gray top is still unknown. Their cap is solid blue with an “I”.

Mexico’s home jersey is white with red sleeves. In prior WBC’s they had a green road jersey, but I have no idea if it will be gray, green or even red (as is the tee shirt pictured). They *own* the green, so let’s hope that’s back this year. Their cap is, as always, awesome with a green crown, red brim, and “M” styled after the 1968 Mexico City Olympic font.

Puerto Rico will definitely have the white top with red sleeves. Again, the road jersey is unknown (I’m going to guess it will be gray, but it could be a solid color). The cap is blue with a red brim and the letters “PR”.

Venezuela is one of the few teams in Pools C & D I know for sure — white homes with blue sleeves, and blue roads with contrasting red sleeves. Nice look! They’ll sport the script “Venezuela” in gold, outlined in red, across the chest. The cap is blue, with a red brim, and a gold “V” outlined in red.

There you have it. The games start early (and early in the morning) next week — and if you’re a die-hard (or an insomniac), every game will be either on MLB network or ESPN Deportes — tha link contains the schedule. The first game the USA plays is on March 10 against Colombia, at 6:00 pm (eastern). Maybe someday the WBC will approach the clout of a World Cup, but for now it’s just some games that take place during spring training involving some of the guys on your team who you hope don’t get hurt. But hey, it’s still baseball, and yes, I will watch.

.
.

A FOUR Jersey Game?

Got a note from reader Neil Kemp who brought to our attention a player who possibly wore FOUR different jerseys in a game. This would have to be some kind of record, if true, right?

Anyway, I’ll let Neil explain:

Hi Paul, Phil,

First off, longtime reader & member, love the site!

I just wanted to expand on a ticker item from a few days ago regarding an Oilers player wearing NNOB in a brawl vs. the LA Kings in early 1990. It was deduced in the comments that the player in question was Dave Brown, the big giveaway likely was his punch-ready “chicken wing” left sleeve that he wore throughout his career: even his replacement jerseys would have the left cuff pulled all the way to his elbow pad. One thing about that particular fight was that it showed Brown likely wearing his fourth jersey iteration of the game.

Here’s a Youtube clip showing some of Brown’s scraps as an Oiler, the Kings game starts at 9:03:

We can presume Brown started the game in his usual #32 NOB jersey. The Oilers have always had an ace equipment staff that would’ve ensured any player wore their “usual” look by the time warmups began. Can’t find video proof of this though, sadly. In that clip though, you’ll notice Brown in his first scrap shown wearing a #37 NNOB jersey. What brought him to wearing that, who knows. Later on, he gets the gate again after a fight in a #37 NOB jersey, with the nameplate, likely from his usual #32, looking like it’s held on with Velcro or 2-sided tape (I’ve owned two game-worn Oilers jerseys that made use of tape for last-minute adjustments). He leaves the ice with the collar of the jersey torn to the shoulders. Obviously another change would then be needed so he pulls on the #27 NNOB jersey to end the game.

So, he likely went through the game wearing #32 NOB, #37 NNOB, #37 NOB, and #27 NNOB. That has to be some kind of record for one game. Would it be? Possibly future discussion material.

Keep up the great work, cheers,
Neil Kemp

Thanks, Neil. Great research. If indeed he wore four different jerseys in the game, that’s gotta be a record, right? Anyone have any ideas? Do you guys know of any players who’ve gone through more than two jerseys (in any sport) in any game?

.
.

Too Good…

for the Ticker

Got an e-mail from Jesse Gavin the other day detailing the Iowa Girls State Tournament. It’s a bit too long (and too good) for the ticker, so I’m running it here. Here’s Jesse…

. . .

I honestly did not plan for there to be so much here. This covers games from the quarterfinals of the tournament. Semifinals begin Friday, so some teams may be wearing their “other” uniform in the next round. I’ll update if there’s anything that develops when that happens. Boys’ tournament is next week.
Here we go:

– North Scott wore some very snazzy red and white contrast waistbands on their gray shorts. Too bad they couldn’t get all the girls to wear them that way, because those that folded the waists over not only undid the effect, but also showed off a few extra Under Armour logos. Another knock on North Scott is that they still use the outdated and chauvinistic “Lady Lancers” on their jerseys. I haven’t seen their boys team play lately, but I doubt their jerseys say “Dude Lancers.”

– Nevada, North Scott’s opponent, had some very small rear jersey numbers. This is the best photo of them I’ve seen so far.

– There were a couple dozen teams around the state that went through a phase of wearing racerback jerseys about a decade ago. You don’t see them much any more, but the team from Boone is one that still wears them. The Toreadors also sport one of the oddest color combinations you’ll ever see: scarlet and forest green.

– The vast, vast majority of teams this week are outfitted by either Nike, Adidas, or Under Armour. The only exceptions I’ve seen are Bellevue Marquette (Russell Athletic), Cascade (Wilson), and Sioux Center (Russell). You’ll note that those schools offer some of the more unique uni quirks that we’re seeing. Unfortunately, you don’t see that from the schools that going with the templates from some of the big name manufacturers.

College Football News: With yesterday’s news that the University of North Carolina Tar Heels will be wearing the “Jordan” brand logo on their uniforms this coming fall (joining Michigan), with Michael Jordan himself making the official announcement at the half of last night’s Duke/UNC game, James Gilbert unearthed this photograph of Michael Jordan (along with Sam Perkins), on the Kenan Stadium field (photo dated early ’80s). … And here’s a photo of the GOATJimmer Vilk will post “That’s Not A Picture of Magic in the comments yesterday (from Ben Trachtman). … Finally, here’s a “reveal” video (also from James Gilbert).

Grab Bag: Tweeter James Paige thinks it’s terribly disappointing to have the Golf Hall of Fame incorrectly posting this Masters style Leaderboard. … North Carolina Lacrosse broke out new navy helmets yesterday (from James Gilbert). Here is a closeup of the hat. … Also from James, apparently there is a Quiddich team at UNC. … This might be of interest to Tampa-area (or those who may be visiting west/central Florida in the next month) residents: From now through April 2017, the Tampa Museum of Art will present Who Shot Sports: A Photographic History, 1843 to the Present, “the most comprehensive survey of the art of sports photography ever produced, highlighting the aesthetic, cultural, and historical significance of these images and artists in the history of sports.” The exhibition will include approximately 217 photographs by more than 154 photographers ranging from daguerreotypes and salted paper prints to more than 220 digital images showcasing a variety of different sports from nations around the globe (sent in by Ken Traisman). … “I’m on vacation in Sydney and went to a fan-gear store (Mick Simmons Sport) yesterday,” writes Casey Hart. “It was obviously a uni-notable experience, as it’s a uniform store. A couple oddities stuck out (see attachments): They had a nice collection of rugby socks, and a rugby-league team had a knockoff New York Jets logo back in the 1980s. Related: This collection of rugby-league throwbacks is something to behold.”

.
.

And that’s it for today. Hope you guys have a good Sunday and a better week, and maybe you’ll enjoy a WBC game or two on the telly (or not). I’ll be back next weekend, but until then…

“I don’t say nice things about Georgetown very often, but kudos to them for wearing their 80s throwbacks at home while Villanova wears theirs. *I* (and other Nova fans) love being reminded of 1985, but I’m sure the Hoyas don’t.”

37 comments to A Look At The 2017 World Baseball Classic

Really disappointed to see the Dutch ditch Nederlands in favor of Netherlands. What’s next, folks in Holland will stop calling the sport Honkbal?

Mangler|
March 5, 2017 at 8:29 am |

Maybe they could have NEDERLAND for the home uniforms, and NETHERLANDS for the road outfits. At least it won’t be HOLLAND in any case. This is no different from Japan abandoning NIPPON for their uniforms.

MJ|
March 5, 2017 at 9:52 am |

Italy kept ITALIA. There’s no clear precedent.

Mangler|
March 5, 2017 at 8:30 am |

My suggestion for the Rumble Ponies’ mascot name: Clop-Clop.

JD|
March 5, 2017 at 8:34 am |

In Australia video, question is asked, “how will they FAIR?” Ugh. #copyedit

Players who have gone through more than two jerseys in a game? Not to be a smart ass, but it happens all the time in the Winter Classic. One jersey per period! One jersey per player goes to auction, another stays with the team for its archives, and the last go to each individual player as his personal memento.

Mort|
March 5, 2017 at 9:35 am |

i remember watching emmitt smith change his jersey countless times in the game where he broke walter payton’s alltime record.

I was going to write the same thing. I assume you meant not pre-planned to wear multiple jerseys in a game. I think Gretzky started the trend in the NHL in his last game, where I think he may have worn as many as 6 jerseys. Rick Nash wears a different jersey every period, as he likes his jerseys dry and fresh, but he wears the same 3 jerseys each game of a particular jersey set.

Dan T.|
March 5, 2017 at 9:00 am |

I know there are various reasons this happens, but for some reason it bugs me when a national team’s uniforms feature colors that are totally different from the nation’s flag.

I mean, the flag is the chief emblem of every country. The uniforms should match, right?

DJ|
March 5, 2017 at 9:39 am |

The flag may be the chief emblem of the political state. But since when does society equal the state?

MJ|
March 5, 2017 at 9:54 am |

No. Italy wears blue for the House of Savoy. The Netherlands wears orange for the House of Orange. Japan often competes in blue. Germany traditionally wears white (in soccer but in other sports also) even though it doesn’t appear anywhere on their flags. I see nothing wrong with it. Most countries have red or white or blue or green on their flags, limiting the palate.

Jon Rose|
March 5, 2017 at 11:20 am |

As long as the USA wears red, white, and blue, I don’t give a care what the other countries wear. The exception is Canada. They’d look so much better in just red and white without the black.

arrScott|
March 5, 2017 at 9:27 pm |

“I mean, the flag is the chief emblem of every country.”

Nope. Not even close. The flag is one emblem for a country. But there are lots of types of countries, with lots of types of national identities, and lots of different kinds of history. Americans are used to living in a country where the state is the chief connection among us – indeed, our federal government formed most of the states, rather than pre-existing entities coming together to form a larger government. We’re Americans because we share a federal state, so the symbols of the state are also the chief symbols of our society. That history is just not true for a lot of the world’s states and peoples. Also, Americans are used to living in a country where the national flag is ubiquitous. Car dealerships fly flags here, and restaurants, and stores, and houses, and we pause before sporting events to give the flag its own special time. A few other countries are flag-mad like us. But in much of the world, the national flag is something you see only on government buildings and maybe, maybe, people wave it a bit on the national holiday. I’ve been to countries where I saw the flag on the customs agent’s shoulder when I landed at the airport, and again at the airport on the way home, and not once in-between. Much of Europe, the national flag has the colors and pattern it has because of random events that happened in Napoleon’s day, and those random events may or may not have any relationship to what citizens think about their country today.

Dan T.|
March 5, 2017 at 11:38 pm |

Right. Like I said, I understand that there are various reasons that other colors are used, but at the end of the day, there is no denying that a nation’s flag is the primary emblem of the country. When you watch the Olympics, for example, the flag is used as the logo for that country. And, really, most national team uniforms do match their country’s flag colors.

It’s no big deal, just bugs me when they don’t.

Gene sanny|
March 5, 2017 at 9:08 am |

As far as the iowa high school uniforms go, I can see they do their jersey shopping in the Holloway, and the Badger catalogs. I work at a shirt and sign company, and most of those I saw are straight from those catalogs… side panels, stars on the shoulders, etc… just stock jerseys you order and decorate with your team name and numbers. Same goes for those coaches shirts… one stop shopping.

DJ|
March 5, 2017 at 9:37 am |

Their cap is red with a blue brim, and an interlocking “DR”.

More like an interlocking “RD” for “Republica Dominicana.”

Phil Hecken|
March 5, 2017 at 11:03 am |

Believe it or not, when I was writing this up, I actually had a sentence quite similar to that, but ditched it (first I thought it sounded too pedantic, then I thought it might not be correct).

Special K|
March 5, 2017 at 9:49 am |

Similar to pro sports teams, a high percentage of the WBC teams sport red and/or blue on their uniforms. 11 of the 16 teams have blue (including 3 who are just blue and white), and 10 teams have red. 7 (nearly half!) use blue AND red as their colors, while only 2 teams have neither red nor blue. 4 teams use yellow or gold as an accent color. 2 teams have green, 2 use black, and only 1 uses orange. No purple or brown to be seen.

Villanova also had their blue throwbacks on for the drubbing of the Hoyas in DC. The defending national champions have white and blue versions that have been worn 2-3 times apiece this season. Seems to be more “inspired” by 1985 than a straight reproduction, though.

Jim Vilk|
March 5, 2017 at 2:22 pm |

Yeah, the numbers look like a drop shadow. The ’85 numbers were outlined just like the letters.

Random reader|
March 5, 2017 at 9:59 am |

Is Majestic still going to outfit teams for the WBC after their uniform contract with MLB teams expires?

This year’s uniforms might be their worst effort yet. I wish they’d let the teams have more of a say in their look rather than force the same ugly template on everyone.

scott|
March 5, 2017 at 10:30 am |

Didn’t Gaylord Perry supposedly wear several jerseys while winning his 300th game in 1982?

RickAZ|
March 5, 2017 at 10:40 am |

I actually like the sleeve colors on some of these, giving them a vest look. However it is horrible looking to have a different colored long sleeved shirt, for those wearing them, like shown with the Cuban player.
Also not a fan of the USA lettering and hat.

Wade Heidt|
March 5, 2017 at 11:37 am |

I like China’s red and yellow. Looks good and unfortunate we do not get to see that colour combo used in the majors.

They remind me of the old Albuquerque Dukes and Calgary Cannons uniforms in the PCL back in the ’80s.

The link for the Oregon-OSU basketball game in the ticker doesn’t seem to be working.

Rick Cuzzetto|
March 5, 2017 at 3:00 pm |

Four jerseys in a hockey game due to necessity is likely a record. I believe that Wayne Gretzky wore a new jersey for each period during his last season, or at least parts of it. So that’s three in a game.

Rick Cuzzetto|
March 5, 2017 at 3:11 pm |

Re: Oilers equipment staff

I was at a Canucks vs. Oilers game in Vancouver in October 1992. It was the first road game of the season for the Oilers, so a new set of jerseys. I was sitting in second row behind the Oilers bench.

Ron Tugnutt was the backup goalie to Bill Ranford that evening. When the game started, I noticed that Tugnutt’s NOB was spelled incorrectly – as TUGGNUT. I called his name a few times before he looked over his shoulder. I yelled at him that his name was mis-spelled. He ignored me at first, but then I caught him trying to see his nameplate, and eventually he grabbed the jersey and pulled on it until he could see the namebar. He immediately called over one of the equipment staff and pointed it out. When the Oilers came out for the second period, I expected him to be NNOB, but the nameplate had been fixed during the 15 minute intermission.

Rick Cuzzetto|
March 5, 2017 at 8:30 pm |

My brother just reminded me that the incorrect spelling was TUGNNUT, not TUGGNUT. I would love to find photo evidence of that, but it’s not likely!

The 1981 Newtown Jets jersey brings back some memories! Newtown were one of the foundation members of the Sydney Rugby League competition back in 1908. They won three premierships in 1910, 1933 and 1943, before spending many years at the bottom of the league. Then amazingly in 1981 they made it to the Grand Final, losing to Parramatta. This was to be their last hurrah, as the club was forced out of the Sydney Rugby League competition at the end of the 1983 season. The club still exists, and plays in the second-tier NSW Rugby League Premier League. Their fairytale run in 1981 explains why the 1981 jersey is so popular as a “retro/throwback” item.

Drew|
March 6, 2017 at 9:29 am |

I own the China WBC hat from before. I wanted it because I am an expat living in China. China does not have the sports culture that the USA has so it is hard to find sporting memorabilia locally here. When I do wear the hat in public I usually get one or two Chinese asking me about it. I have yet to encounter a Chinese person that knows about the WBC or that China has a team.

Stephen Rochelle|
March 6, 2017 at 2:08 pm |

The “JL” mark on the Bellevue Marquette jersey (from “too good”) forms a whitespace cross in conjunction with the ‘U’ in “Marquette” immediately below. Marquette is a Roman Catholic high school.